


I Thought it was Just a Cold

by musicgirl1120



Category: Grey's Anatomy, Station 19 (TV)
Genre: F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-10
Updated: 2021-01-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:47:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27986430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/musicgirl1120/pseuds/musicgirl1120
Summary: Maya comes down with a cold.  No big deal, right?  Until it escalates into something more.
Relationships: Maya Bishop & Carina DeLuca, Maya Bishop/Carina DeLuca
Comments: 17
Kudos: 360





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I got this prompt from someone on fan fiction: Maya gets pneumonia and it's exacerbated by something at work. I hope you like it!

As a firefighter, her lungs were a pretty important part of Maya’s life. They also were back when she was a runner, and honestly, just as a human in general, properly functioning lungs were pretty necessary.   
The second winter she was captain, just after the one-year mark, Maya came down with a cold that came along with pretty bad congestion in both her head and chest. 

“I’m sorry I gave this to you,” Carina said with a frown as she handed Maya a mug of soup. 

“It’s fine,” Maya said, coughing a little as Carina settle into the couch next to her, “This is just payback for that stomach bug I gave you a few months ago.” 

“That was terrible,” Carina said, laughing a little. 

Carina had brought home this cold last week from work and just as she was getting over it, Maya started coming down with it. It had now been four days since Maya had started feeling the symptoms of the illness and she was in the thick of it. Her head was pounding, she was extremely congested, and her cough was starting to get worse. 

“Bella, are you breathing alright?” Carina asked as she listened to Maya cough again. 

“Yeah,” Maya said, finally getting some control over her breathing, “It’s just a cold.” 

“Alright,” Carina said, nodding as Maya put her head on her shoulder. 

“I’m probably going to go to bed early tonight, though,” Maya said, taking another bite of her food, “I’m exhausted.” 

“I am tired too,” Carina nodded, “Let’s finish dinner and then we can go sleep.” 

They ate their dinner, snuggling together on the couch watching some HGTV show Carina loved. Maya must have fallen asleep because the next thing she knew, Carina was shaking her gently. 

“Bella, it’s time for bed,” the Italian woman said, kissing Maya’s cheek, “Come on.” 

The sick blonde nodded, getting up and walking down the hall to their bedroom. 

“Do you work tomorrow?” Maya asked, coughing a little as they went into the bathroom to get ready for bed. 

“Si,” Carina said, “I have a twenty-four-hour shift starting at 7 pm, but Amelia and I have plans to meet up at 3 to get some more work done on our research.” 

“Which means I won’t see you until after I finish my shift on Thursday morning,” Maya said, pouting a little.

“Si,” Carina said, leaning over and planting a kiss on her girlfriend’s adorable pout.

It wasn’t often that the OB/GYN worked 24 hours shifts. Sure, she was on call for 24-hour periods, but two to three times a month, she had to work a 24-hour shift which was always hard with Maya’s schedule, meaning they would go two to three days without seeing each other in person. They finished getting ready before climbing into bed, Carina wrapping her arms around Maya. 

“I’m going to miss you tomorrow night,” Maya said, rolling over so she was facing Carina. 

“I will miss you to Bella,” Carina said, about to give Maya a kiss when the blonde pulled away, letting out a series of violent sneezes into her elbow. 

“Sorry,” Maya said, grabbing a tissue and blowing her nose. 

“You don’t have to apologize,” Carina said, shaking her head as Maya blew her nose, “I’m sorry I gave you this.” 

Maya just shrugged, laying back down. 

“Sleep now, Bella,” Carina said, giving Maya a gentle kiss. 

The fire captain nodded, letting her eyes slip closed. The night was not nearly as restful as Maya needed it to be, her cough waking her up several times during the night. 

However, because her body was conditioned by her father who believed sleeping past sunrise was a cardinal sin, Maya was wide awake at 5:30 am, pulling her tired body out of bed and going for a run. It was drizzling which made the run miserable and cold, leaving her feeling pretty terrible by the time she got home an hour and a half later. 

Carina was still sleeping, as always, because she loved her sleep almost as much as she loved Maya, so the blonde went about her normal morning routine, stretching and starting the coffee pot before going to shower. However, this morning, everything just took longer as she had to stop every few minutes to blow her nose or gain control over her lungs. 

By the time she went to get in the shower, it was a little after 8 am and Carina was starting to stir. 

“Morning Babe,” Maya said, voice heavy with congestion. 

“Buongiorno Bella,” Carina said, smiling as Maya came over to her side of the bed, “Oh, why are you so wet?” 

“Because we live in Seattle,” Maya said, leaning down and giving Carina a small kiss before turning away, coughing harshly. 

“Maya,” Carina said, “You should not be running in the rain when you are sick in the middle of winter.” 

“I’m fine. It’s just a cold,” Maya said, shrugging, “I need to go shower. Care to join me?” 

Carina let out a sigh at how damn stubborn her girlfriend was but got out of bed, following the blonde into the bathroom. After a long, hot shower, both of them got out, dressing in lounge wear for the day. 

“Are you sure you are feeling alright?” Carina asked as Maya cough again. 

“Yeah,” Maya said, nodding, “Really, Car, it’s the same cold you had. Yesterday and today are probably the worst it’s going to be. Just watch, next time you see me, I’ll be a new woman.” 

Carina laughed as she went into the bathroom to dry her hair. Maya went and made them both breakfast, blueberry pancakes and a green smoothie because both their immune systems could use the boost. 

“This looks great Bella,” Carina said, smiling as she walked into the kitchen just as Maya finished flipping the last pancake. 

They sat down, eating breakfast together. Once they were done, Carina went to clean the kitchen while Maya went to dry her own hair. Once she was done, she started cleaning the bathroom. She was about halfway through when Carina walked in. 

“What are you doing?” the Italian asked. 

“Cleaning the bathroom,” Maya said, coughing into her elbow. 

“You need to be resting,” Carina said, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend’s waist. 

“I’m fine,” Maya said for what felt like the 1000th time that day. 

Carina just shook her head, knowing Maya wasn’t going to rest, and if she was sicker, Carina might have pushed harder, but the blonde was right. The cold, while annoying, wasn’t anything too terrible. Carina went and started cleaning the living room, knowing that the place needed a good cleaning. By 11, the apartment was clean. 

“I am going to go take a nap,” Carina said, “I’m not that tired, I’m not sure how much sleep I’m going to get tonight.” 

“Alright,” Maya said, coughing roughly. 

“Do you want to join me?” Carina asked, brushing a piece of hair off Maya’s forehead, “You look like you need it more than me.”

“I need to work on some paperwork,” Maya said, “Besides, I’m not good at napping.” 

“Alright,” Carina said, giving Maya a kiss before going into the bedroom. 

Maya worked through her files, trying to catch up after the long week they had had. Carina got up around 1, making them both a simple lunch of grilled cheese and tomato soup. 

“This is so good,” Maya said, taking a bite of her lunch, “Thank you.” 

“You’re welcome,” Carina said, smiling at her girlfriend. 

After lunch, Maya was starting to feel really tired and was considering laying down, a rare move for the often-hyperactive former Olympian, when her phone buzzed. It was Sullivan, asking where she was. It was then she remembered she had her monthly meeting with him that was supposed to start five minutes ago. She texted him, telling him she had forgotten and that she would be there in less than ten minutes. 

“What’s wrong Bella?” Carina asked as Maya ran into bedroom that Carina had just gone into to get ready for work. 

“I forgot I have my monthly meeting with Sullivan today,” Maya said, pulling on something besides her rattiest sweatpants and Carina’s sweatshirt. 

“Oh Bella,” Carina said, “Anything I can do?” 

“I’m good,” Maya said, coughing as she went to put on her sneakers, “I guess I’ll see you Thursday?” 

“Si,” Carina said, leaning in for a kiss, “I love you.” 

“I love you too,” Maya said, about to kiss Carina but turning and sneezing. 

“Take some tissues,” Carina said, handing Maya a few as the blonde stole one more kiss before running out the door. 

She quickly walked the three blocks to the station. She was feeling a little winded when she got to there which was weird, but she just ignored it as she ran into her office, grabbing her report binder before she bounded up the steps to Sullivan’s office. 

“I’m so sorry, sir,” Maya said, “I don’t even know what I was thinking. I promise it will not happen again.” 

“It’s fine Bishop,” Sullivan said, shaking his head as he gestured to the seat she always sat in for their meetings. 

They went through their meeting, Maya having to take a few breaks because of coughing fits. 

“Anything else sir?” the captain asked as they finished their last report. 

“No,” Sullivan said, “But Bishop, you might want to consider taking a sick day tomorrow. You sound rough.” 

“I’m fine sir,” Maya said, “It’s just a cold. Carina just got over it. I’ll be fine.” 

“Alright,” Sullivan said, eying the young captain, “Well, get some rest, and take time if you need it.” 

“Thank you sir,” Maya said, nodding. 

She walked down the stairs, putting her files away before heading home. It was getting dark even though it was only 4:30, and the wind had picked up. Maya walked home, her lungs clearly not a fan of the cold air. She coughed for a good five minutes when she walked in the door, feeling very winded after.

She went into the kitchen, starting the tea kettle before going into the bedroom, changing back into her pajamas before going and finishing making her tea. She then went and curled up on the couch, suddenly very tired. 

She turned on the TV, just relaxing on the couch. She knew she needed to make dinner, but she wasn’t particularly hungry. She was almost asleep when her phone rang. She grabbed it, answering the facetime from Carina. 

“Hey Babe,” Maya said tiredly as she coughed a little, “What’s up?” 

“Were you asleep?” Carina asked, concerned. 

“No,” Maya said, “Just resting on the couch. I didn’t sleep that well last night.” 

“I’m sorry, Bella,” Carina said, frowning as she sat on her couch, “How was your meeting?” 

“Other than being almost fifteen minutes late, it was fine,” Maya said, sighing, “I still can’t believe I did that. How was your research?” 

“Amelia and I finally made some progress,” Carina said, shaking her head, “Which is good since we have a grant proposal due next month.” 

“Good,” Maya said before breaking into a coughing fit. 

“Oh Bella,” Carina said when it ended, “You sound awful.” 

Maya just shrugged, getting up and going into the kitchen, pouring herself another mug of tea. 

“Are you drinking tea?” Carina asked, brow furrowed. 

“Yeah,” Maya said, shrugging as she grabbed a banana off the counter before going back to the couch, “Why?” 

“You only drink tea when you feel really bad,” Carina said. 

“I’m fine,” Maya said, coughing as she sat down, “I just wanted something warm and it’s too late for coffee.” 

“Alright,” Carina said as Maya yawned, “You should go to bed Bella. Sleep is the best way to feel better.” 

“I know,” Maya said, peeling her banana, “I’m just going to eat my dinner and then I probably will.” 

“A banana?” Carina said, raising her eyebrows, “That is your dinner?” 

“I’m not hungry,” Maya said, “You made such a good lunch, and cooking just seems like so much effort.” 

Carina just shook her head, knowing her girlfriend had some of the weirdest eating habits she had ever seen. 

“Maya, if you are feeling bad tomorrow, please stay home,” Carina said, frowning as Maya started coughing again. 

“I will be fine,” Maya said once she could talk again, earning a look from Carina, “I will stay home if I’m too sick to work.” 

“Alright,” Carina said, “I wish I was home with you tonight.” 

“Me too,” Maya said, taking another bite of her banana. 

“Text me in the morning,” Carina said, “I love you.” 

“Love you too,” Maya said, “Have a good shift.” 

They both hung up, Maya finishing her banana before going into the kitchen, deciding she needed to eat something else or else she would wake up hungry in the middle of the night. She grabbed a protein bar, eating it as she cleaned up the kitchen. 

It wasn’t even eight, but Maya was exhausted so she went into the bedroom, getting ready for bed before grabbing her laptop, putting on The Office as she laid down in bed. 

Her cough was rough and every time she came close to falling asleep, her lungs decided to keep her up. Finally, around midnight, her body finally gave in, and she fell into an uneasy sleep. 

She was up at her normal 5:30, her body groaning as she got out of bed. Her chest ached as she coughed, having to grab a tissue to spit into as she coughed up mucus. She seriously debated not going for her run, but she decided to still go. 

She only ran about three miles, her lungs screaming by the time she finished. She went back home, getting ready for work. She was just about to make a protein shake when her phone rang. 

“Hey babe,” she said, answering Carina’s call with a smile. 

“Hi Bella,” Carina said, frowning a little when she saw the dark circles under Maya’s eyes and the slight flush in her cheeks, “How are you feeling this morning?” 

“I’m fine,” Maya said, throwing some spinach into the blender before going to grab the protein powder and frozen fruit, “Just tired. I had a hard time falling asleep last night.” 

“Are you sure?” Carina asked, “You look flushed.” 

“It’s just the lighting in here,” Maya said, brushing it off. 

“Alright,” Carina said, not quite sure if Maya was being honest, but deciding to trust her. 

“How was your night?” Maya asked, measuring her protein powder. 

“It was fine,” Carina said, “Busy. I got a few hours of sleep though.” 

“Good,” Maya said, “Hang on one second.” 

Maya started the blender, letting it run for a few seconds, using the time to cough without Carina hearing, before turning it off. 

“I’m getting paged,” Carina said, looking down at her pager, “I’ve got to go.” 

“Alright,” Maya said, “Love you. Have a good rest of your shift.” 

“Love you too,” Carina said as she pulled on her white coat, “Be safe.” 

Maya hung up, grabbing her travel cup, pouring her smoothie into it before quickly washing the blender and heading out the door, coughing as she walked out of her apartment complex and headed to the station. 

Walking to work felt like it took a lot more effort than normal, and Maya was out of breath by the time she got there. She went into her office, coughing the entire time she dressed in her uniform, storing her bag in her bunk. 

She managed to get control of her breathing before heading upstairs. She made it through breakfast with raising too much suspicion on how bad she was starting to feel, although she was still thinking she just had a bad cold.

Just as they were finishing their food, the alarm went off for a three-alarm fire. They all headed out, Maya climbing into the engine with Andy and Miller. As they drove, she had another coughing fit. When she finished, Andy looked over at her. 

“Captain are you alright?” the lieutenant asked. 

“It’s just a cold,” Maya said, brushing her off, “I’m fine.” They got to the scene, Maya reporting to the captain in charge at the scene, getting her team’s assignments. She then went to join her team, heading up to help fight the fire that was burning on the third floor of an office building. 

“Miller, Gibson, Warren, hit it from the north side,” Maya said as they approached the floor, “Herrera, you’re with me.” 

They went to work, Andy rigging the hose line before they started hitting the fire. Maya was starting to have a harder and harder time breathing, knowing that at this rate, she was going to blow through her tank way faster than she should. She was thinking about tapping out, getting someone else to come take her place, but they close to being done. 

As Andy got control of another corner of the office, Maya’s tank alarm started going off.

“Is it broken?” Andy asked as she looked back at her friend, “You have on a 60-minute tank. You should not be out already.” 

“I… I don’t think so,” Maya said, breathing rough and heavy. 

“Woah,” Andy said, seeing how bad her friend looked, “Let me call backup.” 

“I’m fine,” Maya said, coughing a little, “We’ve almost got it out. Let’s just finish.” 

It took another ten minutes, but they managed to get the flames out. 

“Come on,” Andy said, wrapping her arm around her friend who was so clearly not ok, “Let’s get you out of here.” 

They started down the stairs, Maya have to stop on every landing to catch her breath. 

“Montgomery, Hughes,” Andy called into her radio, “Be ready. Bishop is having trouble breathing. We’re almost to you.” 

“Copy,” Travis said into the radio. As soon as they were out the door, Travis and Vic had Maya on the gurney as Andy helped her pull her gear off. 

“I… fine…” Maya rasped out between harsh coughs. 

“Shut up,” Vic said as she put an oxygen mask on her friend as Travis got an O2 monitor on her finger. 

“I think this thing is broken,” Travis said when he saw the 78 reading coming out of the monitor. He quickly pulled it off Maya, putting it on himself and getting a 99. 

“Damn it Bishop,” he said, realizing that it was his captain’s lungs, and not the machine, that were not functioning normally, “Hughes, up her oxygen and let’s get her to Grey Sloan.” 

Now that she was sitting and not in danger, Maya was starting to feel really bad. She coughed and coughed, struggling to get any oxygen in her lungs. Vic handed her an emesis basin which she spit a mouthful of mucus in. 

“You’re alright, Maya,” Vic said as they loaded her into the aid car, “Just relax.” 

“Chest… hurts…” Maya said through ragged breaths. 

“Let me listen to your lungs,” Vic said, grabbing the stethoscope. 

Vic listened for a few seconds on each side, frowning. 

“You do not sound good,” Vic said, “And I don’t think it’s just smoke inhalation. I know you’ve been sick this week. Have you been having any trouble breathing?” 

“A little,” Maya said, nodding as she leaned back against the stretcher. 

“Open,” Vic said, pulling Maya’s mask of for a minute to check her throat for swelling that was dangerous when it came to smoke inhalation, “Well, your throat looks ok. It’s red, but there’s no swelling so that’s good.” 

Maya nodded a little, grateful that at least she wasn’t going to need to be intubated. 

“Ok,” Vic said as Travis took Maya’s arm, starting an IV, “Let me get your temp and then we can head out.” 

Maya only responded by coughing again, grabbing the basin and spitting another mouthful of mucus into it. 

“Yeah, I’m betting this is pneumonia,” Travis said as he secured his captain’s IV, “Maya, what were you thinking going into that fire today?” 

“I thought I had a cold,” Maya said as Vic stuck the thermometer in her ear. 

“103.1,” Vic said, “Some of that is probably overheating from the fire, but you are sick for sure. Trav, let’s go.” 

The firefighter nodded, heading into the front where he called the hospital, telling them they were coming. 

“Is Carina working today?” Vic asked as they drove, noting that Maya’s oxygen had come up to 90 with all the O2 they had her on. 

Maya nodded, not wanting to set off another coughing fit. 

“Alright,” Vic said, “I’ll have someone page her when we get there.”


	2. Chapter 2

Maya’s response was another long, painful coughing fit. They pulled up to Grey Sloan, Vic hopping out. 

“Maya Bishop, 32. Smoke inhalation and difficulty breathing. O2 was 78 before oxygen. Throat is red but not swollen. Temp 103. She’s been sick all week, and her lungs do not sound good,” Vic said as she helped unload her friend. 

“Maya,” Jo said, having hung out with the fire captain many times at Meredith’s house, “Alright. Let’s get her into a room. I need a chest x-ray stat. And can someone page Carina Deluca.” 

They got Maya into a room, Travis going to fill out the paperwork while Vic stayed with the sick woman. 

“Alright, Maya,” Jo said, “I am going to do a quick exam, is that alright?” 

The blonde nodded, moving a little to make the exam easier. 

“Alright,” Jo said after a few minutes, “I need x-rays to confirm, but it sounds like pneumonia. Vic, you said she has smoke inhalation?” 

“She ran out of air while fighting a fire,” Vic said, nodding. 

“She was… you were fighting a fire with lungs that sound this bad?” Jo said, eyes wide. 

Maya just nodded, coughing again. Vic handed her some tissues that she could spit into. 

“So, you’re also bringing up sputum,” Jo said, making a note in Maya’s chart, “Not that I don’t trust Vic, but I need to check your airway one more time, just to be safe.” 

Maya nodded, moving her mask so Jo could look at her throat. 

“Good call Vic,” Jo said, nodding, “Airway is clear.”

Just then, a resident walked in. 

“Someone called for an OB consult?” the resident said. 

“No, I paged Dr. Deluca,” Jo said, looking at the resident. 

“She just started a c-section on triplets,” the resident said, “She asked me to come instead.” 

“Well, I don’t need a consult,” Jo said, shaking her head. 

“Then why did you page?” the resident asked before seeing who the patient was, recognizing her boss’s girlfriend from the many visits the fire captain made to the OB floor, “Oh. Never mind. Do you want me to go tell her?” 

“No,” Jo said, knowing OB had been short staffed recently and there was probably no one who could do the surgery, “Just go. I’ll take care of it. And do not tell her Maya is here.” 

The resident nodded, leaving. 

“A nurse is going to come take you for a chest x-ray,” Jo said, looking at Maya, “I am going to go talk to Carina.” 

Maya nodded a little as Jo left the room. 

“Do you need anything Mai?” Vic asked, going to her friend’s side. 

Maya shook her head as Travis walked in. 

“Everything’s all squared away,” Travis said, “Where’s Carina?” 

“She’s in surgery,” Vic said, “We can stay until she’s done.” 

“No,” Maya said, pulling the mask off, “You two need to get back to the station. I’m…” 

Maya couldn’t finish her sentence as she started coughing again. 

“You’re not fine,” Travis said, giving Maya a look before turning to Vic, “But she’s right. We need to get back.” 

“I’ll stay,” Vic said, “Maya, you shouldn’t be alone.” 

“Vic, I will be fine,” Maya said, “Back to work, that’s an order.” 

“You suck,” Vic said, shaking her head, “If you didn’t look like death, I would kill you.” 

Maya cracked a half smile as she pointed to the door. 

“Feel better Captain,” Travis said, heading out. 

“Text me if you need anything,” Vic said, squeezing Maya’s shoulder. 

The blonde nodded a little as her friends left. Maya closed her eyes, coughing roughly again. She had just finished when a nurse came in. 

“Alright Ms. Bishop,” the nurse said, “I am going to take you up to x-ray.” 

Maya nodded, getting in the wheelchair as the nurse situated her IV pole and put her on portable oxygen. They went to x-ray before the nurse took Maya back to her room. “Do you need anything?” the nurse asked. 

“No, thanks,” Maya said, shaking her head as the nurse helped her back into the bed. 

“Alright,” the nurse said, “I’ll tell Dr. Wilson you’re done.” 

Maya just leaned back, closing her eyes. She truly was feeling terrible, her entire body aching and her lungs burning. About twenty minutes later, there was a knock on the door and Jo walked in. 

“So, you definitely have pretty bad pneumonia in both lungs,” Jo said, showing Maya the chest x-rays, “I am going to get you on some heavy-duty IV antibiotics and more fluids, and I can’t let you go until your maintaining oxygen above 90 on your own.” 

“Carina?” Maya asked, too tired for more than that. 

“I talked to her,” Jo said, “And told her you were here, and that you were being taken care of. She has to finish the c-section and then she said she’ll be down.” 

Maya nodded, rubbing her eyes. 

“I’m going to send a nurse in with the antibiotics and something to help with the fever,” Jo said, “I’ll come back and check on you in a little while. Try to get some rest.” 

Maya nodded, coughing harshly again as Jo left. Within ten minutes, Maya had fallen into a restless, uneasy sleep. 

Meanwhile, up in the OR, Carina was struggling. She had just made the incision into the uterus, exposing the first baby’s amniotic sac when Jo had walked in. 

“Dr. Wilson,” Carina said, continuing with the surgery, “Can I help you?” 

“Um, it’s about Maya,” Jo said quietly as Carina handed the first baby off. 

“Here is your first little girl,” Carina said, faking a happy voice for her patient and her wife as she held up the screaming baby, before turning to Jo, “What? Is she alright? Did she get hurt?” 

“She’s in the ER,” Jo said, “But it’s not from an injury. She has some mild smoke inhalation and probably pneumonia.” 

“Cosa? Pneumonia. Damn it. I knew I should have made her stay home. She looked so sick when I called this morning, but she said she was fine” Carina said before holding up the second baby, “And here is your son. He looks great.” 

“She is fine,” Jo reassured as Carina continued with the c-section, handing off the second baby, “Or she will be. She’s down in the ER getting a chest x-ray. I’ll make sure she’s well taken care of until you’re done here. She’ll be ok.” 

“Here is your baby girl. They all look great,” Carina said to her patients before turning back to Jo, “I should be done here in about forty minutes.” 

“I’ll let her know,” Jo said, leaving the OR. 

Carina continued with the c-section, the OR much quieter now that the babies were all on the way to the NICU. Just as Carina was about to finish closing the uterus, her patient started bleeding. 

“Damn it,” Carina said, packing the uterus, “Put her under please… now.” 

Within a minute or two, her patient was out and Carina was trying to control the bleeding. Her resident was helping her, but the field was flooded with blood. Carina worked for twenty minutes, trying to stop the bleeding but just not getting it to stop. 

“Hang another unit of blood and prepare for an emergency hysterectomy,” Carina called, realizing the bleeding was only getting worse. 

Carina worked to remove the uterus and stop the bleeding, having what should have been a simple c-section turn into an almost four-hour long procedure that left her patient without the organ she had just used to bring three babies into the world. Carina finished up, allowing her resident to close before she went to find her patient’s wife. 

After explaining what had happened and reassuring the new mom that everything was going to be alright, Carina was beat, but desperate to get down to the ER to see Maya. She checked in with her charge nurse, making sure there were no other emergencies before going down to the ER. 

She walked into the room where she knew Maya was, smiling a little when she saw Teddy sitting in the chair next to her girlfriend, working on charts. 

“Carina,” Teddy said, smiling as the OB walked in, “Hey. I heard that Maya was here and that you were stuck in surgery so I decided I can chart here just as well as in my office. I’ve been here about two hours. She was awake for a while when I got here but fell asleep probably 45 minutes ago.” 

“Thank you Teddy,” Carina said, smiling. 

“It wasn’t just me,” Teddy said, “Amelia was in here for an hour before me, and I think Meredith was in here before that. We all care about both of you Carina.” 

“Thank you,” Carina said, eyes watering. 

“Mmm,” Maya groaned, “Car.” 

“Hey Bella,” Carina said, going over to the bed where Maya was, “I’m right here.” 

“I’m sick,” Maya said, rubbing her eyes. 

“Si,” Carina said, smiling a little, “I know.” 

Just then, there was a knock on the door and Jo walked in. 

“Carina,” Jo said, “Finally finished?” 

“Si,” Carina said, shaking her head, “I ended up having to do an emergency hysterectomy. It was a mess.” 

“That sucks,” Jo said, frowning, “Well, the good news is, your breathing is better than when she came in, or at least she’s maintaining better O2. I want to keep her for another hour or two just to make sure, but she should be good to go home after that.” 

“Good,” Carina said, smiling down at Maya as the blonde woman started coughing again, “Oh Bella. That sounds painful.” 

Maya nodded as she spit into a tissue, trying to get a good breath. 

“I’m getting paged,” Teddy said, getting up, “Sorry. Feel better Maya.” 

“Thanks,” Maya rasped out. “I need to go too,” Jo said, “I’m going to order one more bag of fluids for you. I’ll be back in an hour or two to check you out.” 

Maya nodded, rubbing her tired eyes. Carina went to go sit in the chair, but Maya grabbed her hand. 

“Lay with me?” Maya asked quietly, desperate for a little comfort. 

“Of course,” Carina said as Maya moved a little so Carina could climb in. 

“I’m sorry you’re so sick Bella,” Carina said, wrapping Maya in her arms. 

Maya just snuggled closer to Carina, closing her eyes. 

“I am going to have to go back upstairs for a little bit,” Carina said, stroking Maya’s sweaty hair, “Just to finish up a few things and see if I can get Julia to come in a few hours early so I can take you home.” 

“Not yet,” Maya said, just needing to be with her girlfriend for a few minutes. 

“Not yet,” Carina affirmed, dropping a kiss on Maya’s forehead, frowning at how warm she was. She wanted to scold Maya for going to work today, for putting her life at risk by going into an active fire when she was already struggling to breath, but she could tell her girlfriend was already regretting her choices enough right now. 

About twenty minutes later, Carina’s pager started going off. 

“I have to go Bella,” Carina said, pressing one last kiss into Maya’s too-hot forehead, “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” 

Maya frowned, but let Carina up. Almost an hour after Carina left, there was another knock at her door and in walked Andrew Deluca. 

“Andrew,” Maya said, not sure what her girlfriend’s brother was doing there, their relationship strained at best. 

“I heard you were here,” Andrew said, “And I thought I would come make sure you were alright.” 

“I’ll be fine,” Maya said, nodding as she relaxed a little. 

“Good,” Andrew said, “What the hell were you thinking going into a burning building when you had pneumonia? Are you trying to die and leave my sister alone?” 

“I didn’t know I had pneumonia,” Maya said, coughing as she spoke. 

“Oh please,” Andrew said, “With a cough like that. You knew. You are so selfish, Maya. Don’t you ever think of anyone but yourself? Do you even care about my sister?” 

“I don’t have the energy for this right now Andrew,” Maya said, coughing harshly, “And I really did think it was just a cold.” 

“Oh, right, because it’s all about you,” Andrew said, “You keep messing up, scaring my sister. If you knew what was good for her, you would leave her alone, stop putting her through this.” 

Jo walked in as Andrew was yelling. 

“Dr. Deluca,” she said firmly, “Get out of my patient’s room. You have no right to be here.” 

“But…” Andrew started again just as Carina walked up. 

“Andrea?” Carina said, “What are you doing here?” 

“He was just leaving,” Jo said, shaking her head. 

Carina looked at her brother again before looking at her girlfriend, seeing the tears that were threatening to fall down her cheeks. 

“Andrea,” Carina warned, giving him a look, “Go. Now.” 

“You deserve so much better than a woman who puts her life in danger without even thinking about you,” Andrew said, storming out, Jo following him both to give the two women some space and also to go find Mer and tell her to take care of Andrew because he was clearly not ok because even though he didn’t necessarily like Maya, he would not normally yell at a sick patient, no matter who they were.

Carina took a deep breath before going to Maya, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend. She knew Andrew and Maya had a rocky relationship, something that bothered her a little, but she never thought her brother would come and berate her girlfriend loudly while she was in the ER as sick as she was. 

Normally, Maya tried to ignore Andrew’s words, but today, with as bad as she was feeling, it was above her emotional capabilities, and against her will, tears started running down her cheeks. 

“Shhh,” Carina said, kissing the top of Maya’s head, “It’s alright. I’m so sorry he did that.” 

“I’m sorry,” Maya said, trying not to sob, knowing it would just make breathing harder, “I’m sorry.” 

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” Carina said, shaking her head, “Nothing.” 

Maya started coughing again, struggling hard to breath as the tears continued. 

“It’s ok Bella,” Carina said gently, “Just breath.” 

Maya managed to finally get a good breath, calming down a little. 

“I’m right here,” Carina said, holding Maya close, “It’s ok.” 

There was a knock on the door and Jo came back in. 

“I can come back if this is a bad time,” the attending said. 

“I’m ok,” Maya said, looking at the woman, “Can I go home?” 

“Only because you are going home with a doctor,” Jo said, looking at Maya’s monitor. 

She had taken the fire captain off oxygen a few hours ago and Maya’s o2 had been bouncing between 88 and 90 since. 

“I promise to take care of her,” Carina said, smiling at Jo. 

“I have no doubt,” the other woman said, smiling, “You know the drill with pneumonia. Lots of fluids. Lots of rest. Monitor her oxygen. Steam. Hot liquids.” 

“Si,” Carina said, nodding, “And I promise to bring her back if she gets worse.” 

“Good,” Jo said, “Here are antibiotics. Two a day every day for the next week. Maya, you cannot go back to work until you are completely better. Any more smoke inhalation could seriously damage your lungs if you aren’t careful.” 

The blonde nodded, not happy about it, but knowing Dr. Wilson was right. 

“Alright,” Jo said, “I will send a nurse in with your discharge papers. Feel better Maya.” 

“Thanks,” the sick woman rasped out. 

Within twenty minutes, Carina was guiding Maya out to her car, the blonde only in her socks because Vic and Travis had pulled off her turnouts at the scene. The blonde was silent on the way home and up to their apartment, not really making eye contact with Carina. 

“Do you want to shower?” Carina asked, hoping Maya said yes because the blonde smelled like smoke. 

Maya shrugged, still not really looking at Carina. 

“Bella,” the Italian said, deciding there was probably more to Maya’s silence than her illness, “What’s wrong?” 

“Your brother was right,” Maya said, still not looking at Carina, “I was stupid to do what I did today. I really did think I was fine until we were in the middle of fighting the fire, but I should have known better. I’m so sorry. You don’t deserve to have to worry about me all the time.”

“Bella,” Carina said, pulling Maya close as she mentally made a note to never let her brother and girlfriend be alone together again, “Hey. We’ve talked about this. I get to choose what I can handle, not him. The amount I love you far exceeds the worry, and not having you in my life would be so much worse than worrying about you when you go to work. And yes, maybe you should have listened to your body a little more today, but I trust you and your team and your choices.” 

Maya cried until the coughing started and then that, mixed with the crying caused her to gag, Carina quickly guiding her into the bathroom. Maya gagged, throwing up as Carina held her hair. 

“Shhh,” Carina said, trying to calm her down, “You have to calm down Bella.” 

Maya struggled for a few minutes but managed to finally calm down enough to breathe again. They sat there on the floor of the bathroom for a few minutes, Carina just running her hands through Maya’s hair. 

“Can we take a shower now?” Maya asked after a while. 

“Of course,” Carina said, standing up before helping Maya up. 

The brunette started the shower, getting the water warm, closing the door and leaving the fan off to help steam up the room. She then helped Maya into the shower, helping her wash her hair and body before they just stood there, letting the steam help open up Maya’s junkie lungs. 

Once the water stopped being warm, they got out, Maya dressing in a pair of warm pajamas before climbing into bed. Carina left the bedroom, coming back in a few minutes later with the humidifier they had stored in the linen closet along with a pot of tea. 

“Thanks babe,” Maya mumbled as Carina set up the humidifier, pointing it directly at Maya’s face. 

“Do you need anything else?” Carina asked, setting the pot of tea down on Maya’s nightstand. 

“You,” Maya said. 

“Of course,” Carina said, climbing into bed. 

“Also, can you text Vic or Andy or someone and tell them I’m ok?” Maya asked, not having the energy to find her phone and text them herself. 

“Sure,” Carina said, nodding as she grabbed her phone, texting Maya’s friends before cuddling down into the sheets with Maya. 

“Wake me up if you need anything,” Carina said, pressing a kiss to Maya’s forehead. 

The blonde nodded, moving closer to her girlfriend. 

“I love you Bella,” Carina said, rubbing Maya’s back. 

“I love you too,” Maya mumbled back, and even though her chest hurt like hell and she felt like there was cement in her lungs, there was nowhere in the world that Maya felt better than exactly where she was in her girlfriend’s arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there it was! I'm toying with doing another chapter, but what do you think? Is this a good ending?


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I heard you all so here is the next chapter!

Carina laid there for a while, just starting at Maya, listening as her lungs struggled to move the air in and out. Carina sighed, gently kissing Maya’s hot forehead as the blonde slept. She felt so bad for her girlfriend. She had given her the cold that had caused this pneumonia. She logically knew there was no way one of them was going to avoid the other one’s illness, mostly because no matter how sick one of them was, the other one couldn’t bear to leave them alone to sleep in another room. 

Even when they weren’t living together and Carina came down with a nasty virus that landed her in bed for close to a week with a high fever, body aches, and terrible bouts of nausea, Maya had spent every moment she wasn’t working with her girlfriend, just trying to help her feel better. Carina had then returned the favor when Maya came down with the same illness the following week, having picked her up from work when Andy texted her, telling her her girlfriend was throwing up in her office. 

It was the same way after they moved in together, both of them taking turns sharing various illnesses. 

This, however, was the sickest either of them had ever been. Maya coughed deeply in her sleep, moving out of Carina’s arms. 

Before the Italian woman tried to sleep herself, she got up, going into the bathroom to their box of weird supplies under the counter. She dug past the water pik and various face creams and a few of Maya’s ankle braces and ace bandages before she found what she was looking for. 

She took the pulse oximeter out of its box from where they had stored it after Maya’s scare with bad smoke inhalation a few months ago that was almost bad enough to be admitted to the hospital. However, once Carina promised to keep an eye on her oxygen, she had been allowed to go home with the device to make sure she was alright. 

Carina took the device, putting it on one of Maya’s fingers, getting out a read of 88. It was low, but not so bad that she needed to drag her girlfriend back to the hospital. She set the device on her nightstand before laying down next to Maya, deciding to try to get some sleep herself. 

Carina slept for about two hours before Maya’s coughing woke her up. It was nearing 8 pm and Carina realized neither of them had eaten dinner. She was starving so she grabbed her phone, ordering soup for Maya and a sandwich for herself from an Italian deli down the street. 

She looked over at Maya, the blonde’s breathing rough, her forehead damp, and her hair a mess. Carina grabbed the oxygen monitor, rechecking Maya’s O2. It was still 88. As she pulled the device off, Maya coughed again, blue eyes opening a little. 

“Hi Bella,” Carina said, smiling a little at her, “How are you feeling?” 

“Like I’m breathing through a wet towel,” Maya said, sitting up as she coughed a little. 

“I’m sorry you’re so sick,” Carina said, pressing a kiss to Maya’s forehead, wincing at the warmth, “I ordered some food from Nonna’s.” 

“Did you get minestrina?” Maya asked hopefully. 

“What else would I get for my beautiful, sick girlfriend?” Carina asked, pulling Maya close. 

“You’re the best,” Maya mumbled, closing her eyes. 

Carina held her for a few minutes, just listening to her breath until Maya moved. 

“I need to go to the bathroom,” she said, moving to get up. 

As she stood, she felt a headrush that forced her back down. 

“Are you alright?” Carina asked, getting up and going to Maya’s side. 

“Dizzy,” Maya said, head in her hands. 

“Ok,” Carina said, “Just take it slow. I am right here.” 

A minute later, Maya got up, slower this time, leaning heavily on Carina as the brunette heled her to the bathroom. 

“Just call me when you are done,” Carina said as she walked out of the bathroom. 

She went into the kitchen, grabbing a large glass of water before starting a pot of tea. Once the pot was started, she went back to the bathroom, knocking lightly on the door. 

“Bella?” Carina called, “Are you done?” 

“Yeah,” Maya called as Carina opened the door, finding her girlfriend leaning heavily on the sink. 

“Come here,” Carina said, helping Maya back to bed. 

By the time they got there, Maya was winded and exhausted. 

“This sucks,” Maya said, coughing as she leaned on the pillows, “I can’t even go to the bathroom without feeling like I ran a marathon.” 

“It will get better,” Carina said, offering her the glass of water, “But you have to rest.” 

Maya nodded, drinking close to half the water. Just then, the tea kettle whistled in the kitchen. 

“I’ll be right back,” Carina said, going to finish making the tea. 

Just as Carina finished putting the tea bags in the pot, there was a knock at the door. She opened it, thanking the delivery woman before taking the food and tea into the bedroom. 

“I have tea and food,” Carina said, sitting down on the bed. 

Maya smiled tiredly as Carina handed her the container of the best soup Maya had ever eaten that wasn’t made by her amazing girlfriend. 

“Thanks babe,” Maya said, leaning her head tiredly on Carina’s shoulder. 

“Eat as much as you can,” Carina said, kissing Maya’s forehead as she unwrapped her sandwich, “It’s good for you.” 

Maya nodded, taking a bite. She ate about half the container before setting it down on her nightstand. 

“I can go put that in the fridge for tomorrow,” Carina offered, having finished her own food. 

Maya nodded, moving to let her girlfriend up. 

“Do you need anything else?” Carina asked as she picked up the soup container. 

Maya shook her head, moving to pull the covers up. 

“No,” Carina said, “First, drink. Water or tea, I do not care, but you need hydration.” 

Maya made a face but drank the water as Carina left the room. She returned a few minutes later with another glass of water. 

“Alright,” Carina said, “I am going to get ready for bed, and then we can sleep.” 

Maya nodded, already struggling to keep her eyes open. Apparently having double pneumonia was beyond exhausting. 

By the time Carina got done in the bathroom a mere five minutes later, she couldn’t tell if Maya was awake or asleep until the blonde started coughing, forcing herself to sit up when it didn’t stop. She grabbed a handful of tissues, spitting into it. 

“This is so gross,” Maya said, tossing the tissues into the trash can Carina had put by her bed. 

“It’s better that you cough it out than have it in your lungs,” Carina said, rubbing Maya’s back, “Let me go get something.” 

Carina got up again, returning with the container of vapor rub they bought when they had the flu the previous year. 

“Yes,” Maya said, smiling when she saw the bottle. 

Carina climbed back into bed, taking a little of the rub out, warming it slightly in her hands before rubbing it on Maya’s chest and back. Maya coughed a little as Carina did so, wishing she was feeling just a little less crappy so she could enjoy this at least a little, but as it stood, all she could think about was sleep. 

“Alright,” Carina said, “Now, sleep Bella. And wake me if you need anything.” 

Maya nodded, wanting to lay down, but finding it next to impossible to breath that way. It didn’t take long for both of them to fall asleep. 

Maya woke up around three am because she couldn’t stop coughing. This also woke Carina who sat up, rubbing Maya’s back until the coughing stopped. Carina grabbed the oxygen monitor, putting it on Maya’s finger. 

“Bella, it’s only 85,” Carina said, “We might need to go back to the hospital.” 

“Wait,” Maya said, trying to get a good breath, “Give it a minute.” 

Sure enough, after a minute of Maya concentrating on her breathing and not coughing her lungs out, her oxygen was back up to 89. 

“See,” Maya said, “I’m fine. Let’s just go back to sleep.” 

They both fell back asleep quickly, Carina waking up around 8, shocked to see Maya still sound asleep in bed next to her. The blonde almost never slept past 5:30, and Carina had only ever seen her sleep until 8 on two other occasions. 

She grabbed her phone, seeing she had a few messages from Andy and Vic, asking how Maya was doing and if they needed anything. She texted them back, telling them Maya was still pretty sick, but that they were ok for now. 

She got up, going to the bathroom before going into the kitchen, starting a large pot of her own nonna’s minestrina which her nonna swore was just as good at curing illness as any medicine. While Carina didn’t necessarily think it was that powerful, it was the most amazing thing to eat when you felt terrible. She also started a pot of tea, knowing hot liquids were best for Maya right now. 

Just as she was adding the tea bag, there was a series of loud knocks on their door. 

“Dio mio,” Carina said, running to the door, not wanting to wake Maya, “Andrea? What are you doing here?” 

“How could you?” Andrew said, storming into the apartment, “You told Bailey that I yelled at Maya? Why would you do that? I got suspended again! How are you so blinded by her that you ignore how bad she is for you? That you would betray me for her?” 

“Andrea,” Carina said in a loud whisper, “Shut up. Maya is sleeping, and I would like to keep it that way. First of all. I have no idea what you are even talking about. What would I have told Bailey? And second, you have no right to tell me who I should date and whether or not she is a good girlfriend, which she is. I understand that you were mad that she cheated on me, I was not happy about it either, but Andrea, it has been almost a year. Maya and I have moved past it. She has proven to me time and time again that she is exactly the person I want to be with. I swear, Andrea, if you do not leave her alone, I will stop talking to you. You are being ridiculous.” 

“All she does is hurt you, Carina,” Andrew said, pacing the living room, “Can’t you see that?” 

“No,” Carina said, shaking her head, “No. She does not. She makes me better, makes me feel loved and understood and happy in a way I did not think was possible. She does not judge me and supports me in everything I do. There are times that things she does hurt me, but there are things I do that hurt her, and when it happens, we talk about it and move on. Andrea, I love her, more than I have ever loved anyone. You need to get over whatever your problem is with my girlfriend.” 

“Did she report me?” Andrew asked. 

“I do not even know what you are talking about,” Carina said, trying not to yell, “Maya has barely been awake since she got to the hospital yesterday, and I have no idea what you are talking about.” 

“Someone told Dr. Bailey I was yelling at a patient,” Andrew said, wringing his hands, “And now I am on suspension for a week or until my therapist clears me.” 

“I am sorry Andrea,” Carina said sympathetically, “I know it is hard, but it was not Maya or me. You were very loud, and there were a lot of people around.” 

“I still don’t think you should be with her,” Andrew said, shaking her head, “She doesn’t care about you Carina, not in the way you deserve.” 

“It is time for you to go, Andrea,” Carina said, hearing Maya coughing from the bedroom, “Now. And if I ever hear from Maya that you confronted her like you did yesterday, we are going to have a serious problem. Now go. I need to go take care of my sick girlfriend.” 

“But…” Andrew started, but after seeing Carina’s face, he headed to the door, “Fine. Bye.” 

Carina sighed as she locked the door behind her brother. She took a deep breath before grabbing the pot of tea and going into the bedroom, finding Maya wide awake. 

“How are you feeling?” Carina asked, pouring a mug of tea, handing it to Maya. 

The blonde shrugged, not looking at her. 

“How much of that did you hear?” Carina asked quietly, sitting down next to her girlfriend. 

“Enough,” Maya mumbled, “Carina, I don’t want to be the reason you and your brother don’t get along.” 

“You are not,” Carina said, shaking her head as she wrapped an arm around Maya, the blonde stiff in her arms, “It is Andrea’s fault. He is the one who is beating a dying donkey.” 

“A dead horse,” Maya said, cracking a half smile. 

“Si,” Carina said, nodding, “He is just stupidly protective, and his mania does not help. I think his meds are off again, or something, because he is being unusually irrational lately, and I told him to talk to his doctor and I told Meredith, but who knows if he did anything. I cannot take care of him all the time. It's too much.” 

“I’m sorry,” Maya said, relaxing a little in Carina’s arms. 

“Don’t apologize,” Carina said, shaking her head, “It is important that I have learned to set boundaries around my relationships, learned to take care of myself and not just everyone else. I learned a lot of that because of you, because of all the therapy I went to when we were trying to fix things.” 

“Well, I’m glad that time did some good,” Maya said, coughing harshly, “Don’t you have to work this afternoon?” 

“No,” Carina said, shaking her head as she pointed to the tea, getting Maya to drink some, “I switched with a coworker. I need to be here with you.” 

“You didn’t have to do that,” Maya said, taking another sip of tea, “I would be fine.” 

“Maya, your oxygen is still borderline low,” Carina said, shaking her head as Maya coughed, “Plus, I would not be able to do my work properly today knowing you are this sick. It’s not a big deal. I traded for one of my days off that you were working so it is really not a big deal.” 

“Who knows when I’ll get to go back to work,” Maya said, setting the tea down with a sigh, “God, I should have just rested like you said.” 

“Yes, you should have,” Carina said, kissing Maya’s forehead, “But now you have to. Speaking of rest, would you like something to eat and then another nap?” 

“I’m not really hungry,” Maya said, shaking her head, “The tea is good for now. And I’m not sleepy. Tired, absolutely, but I don’t think I can sleep. Can we go watch a movie?” 

“Of course,” Carina said, nodding, “Let me go get the living room set up.”

Maya nodded as Carina got up, taking the sick woman’s mug and pot of tea with her. Maya wasn’t really sure what she had to set up, but she was too tired to ask. 

Carina came back a few minutes later, helping Maya up. The blonde stopped to go to the bathroom first before Carina guided her into the living room. 

Carina had the perfect sick day set up going. A box of tissues were on the end table along with glasses of water, juice, and a rehydration solution Maya used after workouts, along with a mug of tea. There was a trash can on the floor and Maya’s absolute favorite blanket on the couch along with a stuffed bear Carina had bought for Maya that the blonde pretended to not care much about, but Carina had caught her sleeping with it when she had come home early one night, and Maya caved and told her she slept with it whenever Carina was working, sometimes even taking it to work when she was having a particularly bad time.

“You’re the best babe,” Maya said breathlessly as they sat down on the couch. 

“Only the best for you bambina,” Carina said as they settled into a comfortable position, Maya laying on Carina’s chest, “Also, I grabbed you some crackers because you need to take your antibiotics, and your tummy will be much happier if you put something in it first.” 

Maya nodded, taking the crackers from Carina, nibbling on them while Carina turned on the TV. 

“What do you want to watch?” Carina asked. 

“Can we watch one of your Italian movies?” Maya asked, taking another bite of her cracker, “Whichever one you want.” 

“Si,” carina said, nodding as she pulled up her favorite movie. 

Once Maya finished her crackers and took her antibiotic, she relaxed into Carina’s chest as the brunette played with her slightly sweaty hair, just enjoying the feeling of being taken care of. Maya drifted in and out of sleep over the next three hours until there was another knock on the door. 

“If it is your brother again, I am going to kill him,” Maya mumbled as Carina got up, going to the door. 

She opened it, smiling at who was on the other side. 

“Hey Carina,” Andy said, “How’s Maya?”

“She’s on the couch,” Carina said, motioning for them to come in. 

“What are you guys doing here?” Maya asked, pushing herself up to sitting on the couch. 

“We came to check on our captain who collapsed yesterday,” Vic said as they walked in, “And we were going to bring some soup, but we figured Carina had that covered so we brought juice from that crazy juice bar you love.” 

“Thanks guys,” Maya said, smiling at her friend before she broke off into a deep cough. 

“That sounds great,” Vic said sarcastically as she and Andy sat down on the other couch. 

“How long did the doctors say you’re going to be out?” Andy asked as Carina sat back down on the couch, Maya instantly moving closer to her. 

“Until my cough is better,” Maya said as Carina wrapped her arms around her, pressing a kiss into the back of Maya’s head, “So probably at least two weeks.” 

“At least,” Carina said, giving Maya a look that told her that was probably very unlikely.

“That sucks,” Vic said, shaking her head, “How are you feeling?” 

“Terrible,” Maya admitted, rubbing her eyes, “I am so exhausted because breathing is now basically a full time job.” 

“Maya Bishop admitting she doesn’t feel well?” Vic said, eyes wide, “What’s next? Travis admitting he’s secretly been straight his whole life?” 

“Haha,” Maya said, sticking out her tongue before a coughing fit took over. 

“We better get going,” Andy said when the cough tapered off, “Let you rest. Text us if you need anything.” 

“Thanks guys,” Maya said, offering a tired smile, “I’ll keep you updated on what’s going on.” 

“Bye,” Carina called as they got up. 

“Feel better,” Vic called as they showed themselves out. 

“You have some pretty great friends,” Carina said as Maya leaned into her arms, all the strength she had been trying to show to her friends exhausting her body. 

“So, do you,” Maya said, eyes slipping shut as sleep threatened to take over, “They came and sat with me all day yesterday.” 

“Si,” Carina said, nodding, “We both have some pretty amazing people in our lives. Now, will you stop fighting with your sick body and sleep?” 

Maya nodded a little, giving in and letting herself fall asleep, hoping when she woke up, she felt at least a little better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking one more chapter on this story. I haven't started writing it yet but I have some ideas. If you have any other Marina story ideas, let me know.


	4. Chapter 4

The next few days were rough to say the least. Maya’s fever decided to creep higher and higher until it got close to 104. It freaked Carina out, but Maya somehow talked her out of dragging her back to the hospital. 

However, three days after Maya came home, when her oxygen started dipping again, there was nothing Maya could do to get Carina to keep her home. 

“I’m… fine,” Maya said breathlessly as Carina helped her put on some clean clothes. 

“Maya, you cannot even get dressed without being out of breath,” Carina said, eyebrow raised, “The only time you are keeping your oxygen above 88 is when you are sitting in bed not coughing. You are retracting which means you are working too hard to breathe. You walked to the bathroom and it dropped to 80. That is dangerous. You need something else to help.” 

Maya though about arguing, but she started coughing, having to sit down in order to not pass out. 

“I guess… you might…be right,” Maya said, struggling to bring the necessary oxygen into her lungs. 

“Let’s go,” Carina said, helping Maya out to the car. 

It took way longer than normal, the blonde having to stop to catch her breath every few feet. Carina held her hand in the car, worried by how cold it was. They made it back to the ER, getting Maya admitted quickly because her oxygen levels were so bad. She was put on oxygen which helped immediately, making her feel at least slightly better almost instantly. 

“Maya,” Jo said, walking over to them when she saw them, “What are you doing back?” 

“She couldn’t move without her oxygen dropping to the low eighties,” Carina said, Maya too tired to talk. 

“Man,” Jo said, looking up and seeing Maya’s numbers were up to around 92 now, “I’m so sorry Maya.” 

The blonde just shrugged, eyes barely open. 

“I’m getting paged,” Jo said, looking at her pager, “Feel better Maya.”

The doctor in charge of Maya’s care took a sputum sample to try to figure out why she was so sick, diagnosing her with viral pneumonia which was incredibly rare in adults. Maya ended up spending three hours in the ER, getting sent home with a steroid inhaler and oxygen in case this happened again. 

They got home, Carina helping Maya back into bed before pulling out the inhaler for her. 

“Before you sleep, you need to take this,” the OB said, handing the device to Maya. 

The blonde obliged, taking two puffs of the aerosolized medication before leaning back against her pillows, planning on sleeping the rest of the day.

However, within ten minutes of taking the meds, Maya was starting to freak out. 

“I don’t feel good Carina,” the blonde complained, looking at her girlfriend with tears in her eyes. 

“I know, Bambina,” Carina said, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend, “Sleep and you will feel better.” 

“I can’t,” Maya said, “I feel panicky.” 

“It’s probably just the meds,” Carina said, knowing rapid heart rate was one of the side effect of the inhaled medication, “Try to relax.” 

“I can’t,” Maya said, tears starting to run down her flushed cheeks, “I can’t.” 

“Ok,” Carina said, “What can I do?” 

“I don’t know,” Maya said, body starting to shake with panic, “I don’t know.” 

“Maya,” Carina said, realizing her girlfriend was in the early stages of a panic attack with was the last thing she needed while her lungs weren’t functioning well, “Hey. Look at me. Try to take a deep breath. I know it’s hard, but just focus on breathing. Come on.” 

Maya tried to get a normal breath, but it just wasn’t happening, both her panic attack and pneumonia making it feel impossible. 

Carina pulled her up, dragging her into the bathroom where she started a warm shower. Maya was still struggling to breathe and calm down as Carina stripped their clothes off, dragging her into the shower. The warm steam mixed with the water helped work Maya out of her panic. 

“There we go,” Carina said, rubbing Maya’s back as they stood under the warm spray, “Just breathe Maya.” 

They stood in the shower for a while, Carina knowing the steam was good for Maya’s lungs. 

“I’m sorry,” Maya said after a while, not moving from her place on Carina’s chest. 

“You don’t need to apologize for having a bad reaction to your medication,” Carina said, shaking her head, “Although, we might need to figure out how to deal with that, because you need that medication.” 

Maya just stood there, shaking in Carina’s arms for a few minutes before they got out. Carina practically had to carry her girlfriend back to bed because she was so weak, but soon enough, Maya was dressed in warm pajamas and back in bed. 

“What do you need?” Carina asked, brushing a piece of wet hair off Maya’s forehead. 

“You,” Maya said, “And sleep.” 

Carina climbed into bed, Maya moving into her arms immediately. Carina grabbed the pulse ox, sticking it on Maya’s finger. Her oxygen was still only 88, but that was fine for now. 

Carina was beyond worried about her girlfriend, especially with how much Maya was sleeping and how little she tried to do while she was awake. It was normally impossible to keep Maya down for long, but apparently double viral pneumonia and mild smoke inhalation was enough to do it. 

She was worried too because Maya was going to need more of the inhaler if her oxygen started dropping again or her breathing got worse, but Maya’s body couldn’t do repeated panic attacks right now. 

Maya only stayed in Carina’s arms for a few more minutes before she moved away. 

Carina then got up, going to make Maya some more soup. There was still plenty of minestrina left, but it was the only semi solid food Maya had put in her body in the past three days so Carina decided she could use something else. She got out the ingredients for split pea soup, knowing it was one of her girlfriend’s favorites. 

Once she had the soup cooking, she went to check on Maya who was still out cold in bed. Carina checked her oxygen again which was up to 90 now that she was calm and resting. She was still burning up, but there was little Carina could do for that. 

The brunette grabbed her laptop before sitting back down next to Maya in bed. Carina had taken her last two shifts off to by with Maya, but because of all the sleeping that was happening, she was completely caught up on her charts so she decided to work on her research. She and Amelia were working on getting a project involving helping women who struggled with sexual pleasure be able to achieve it through neurostimulation off the ground, and they were close to getting at least partial funding. She worked for almost four hours, Maya coughing next to her often but never actually waking up. 

Finally, the coughing got to be too much and the blonde’s eyes slowly opened. She groaned, pushing herself up a little, grabbing a tissue and spitting several mouthfuls of mucus into it. 

“It hurts,” she whined, leaning against Carina. 

“I know Bambina,” the brunette said, wrapping her arms around the sick woman, “I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do?” 

“Get me a new set of lungs?” Maya said, coughing again. 

“That is a bit complicated,” Carina laughed, pressing a kiss into Maya’s hairline, realizing she was warmer than before. 

“It is time for more meds,” the brunette said, “And I have an idea about the inhaler, which you need because you are wheezing and starting to retract again. You are going to take it in the bathroom and then we are going to get in the shower and I am going to hold you until the panicky feeling goes away, and hopefully, that will stave off the panic attack.” 

Maya nodded as Carina got up. 

“First, Tylenol,” Carina said, handing her the pills and some juice. 

Maya took it, coughing after she did so. Once she had her lungs under control, Carina helped her out of the bed. 

“Alright,” Carina said, handing Maya the inhaler, “Take this.” 

As Maya inhaled the medication, Carina started the shower. Within five minutes, they were both standing under the warm spray, Maya just leaning into Carina’s arms, body shaking from exhaustion and the meds. 

It took about twenty minutes for the worst of it to pass, and then they both got out, Carina helping Maya back into pajamas before she crawled into bed. 

“Now,” Carina said, “I have split pea soup ready for you. I’ll be right back.” 

The blonde nodded, eyes already slipping closed, the effort of the shower having taken all of Maya’s energy. By the time Carina got back, Maya was almost asleep. 

“Come on, Bambina,” the brunette said, sighing, “You need to eat.” 

“I’m so tired,” Maya complained, not opening her eyes. 

“Sit up,” Carina said, helping her a little, “Come on. Just a little.” 

Maya shakily took the mug of soup, taking a sip as Carina grabbed the O2 monitor. 

“86,” Carina sighed, “Ok, you are going on oxygen after you finish eating.” 

“I’m fine,” Maya mumbled, coughing a little. 

“Maya, your body is working overtime just to get enough oxygen to your brain so you can semi-function,” Carina said, “It is going to take way longer for your body to heal if it has to use all its energy just to pull oxygen. A little supplemental will help you be able to fight this better.” 

“Fine,” Maya said, knowing Carina was right. 

After she ate about half of her soup, she let Carina stick the oxygen on her face before she curled back up under the covers, sleeping for the next few hours. 

The next two days were much of the same. Maya would wake up, take some meds, eat a little, and then fall back to sleep. She stayed on oxygen for all of that time, finding that she felt a little better with it. 

The afternoon of her second day home from her second trip to the ER, Carina got paged into work. She texted Vic, asking if the younger firefighter could come spend the afternoon with Maya. Vic texted back, saying she would be there in twenty minutes. Carina had to go so she made sure Maya’s oxygen was in the right place before leaving, telling Vic to use her spare key. 

When Vic got there, she texted Carina. “What the hell is wrong with her? Why is she on oxygen?” 

Carina was slammed so she didn’t respond right away, Vic just sitting down on the bed next to her friend. 

Suddenly, Maya started coughing harshly, startling Vic. The younger woman wasn’t sure what to do so she shook Maya, waking her up. 

“Vic,” the blonde said, coughing more, “What… are…” 

“Just breath Bishop” Vic said, rubbing her back as Maya concentrated on breathing in and out. 

Once she had better control of her breathing, Vic moved, handing her a glass of water. 

“What are you doing here?” Maya asked, taking a small sip before handing the cup back. 

“Carina got paged to the hospital and asked if I could come over and stay with you until she got back,” Vic said, “I thought maybe she was just being overprotective or something, but you look like hell. What’s with the oxygen?”

“I have been having a hard time keeping my oxygen levels up,” Maya said, coughing a little, “It’s been getting better though. Hopefully today will be the last day with it.” 

“I thought you were on meds and getting better?” Vic said as Maya leaned back into the pillows. 

“I ended up back in the ER a few days ago,” Maya said, “It’s viral pneumonia which means no meds to clear it, only steroids to help with the inflammation.” 

“Damn,” Vic said, shaking her head, “That sucks.” 

“Tell me about it,” Maya said, yawning, “It’s been rough.” 

“Is there anything I can get you?” Vic asked. 

“No,” Maya said, “I’m sure I will probably fall asleep soon. I have barely been awake 4 hours a day since my first trip to the ER.” 

Vic eyes got wide, knowing that there had been stretches of time where Maya would be awake and fully functional for 72 hours straight so to hear that she was sleeping that much scared Vic almost as much as the oxygen. 

“You can help yourself to whatever you want,” Maya said, “And watch whatever.” 

“Is it ok if I just sit in here?” Vic asked, half scared to leave Maya alone. 

“I don’t care,” Maya said, eyes already slipping closed. 

Vic just sat there, grabbing a book off Maya’s bookshelf and reading it, keeping a close eye on her friend. About two hours later, Maya woke up again, coughing a lot as she forced her body upright. 

“Do you have anything you can take to help?” Vic asked as the coughing slowed down. 

“I… no,” Maya said, not wanting to take the inhaler without Carina around to help her with the after effects, “I’ll be fine. It’s getting a little easier to breathe.” 

Vic nodded, not sure she believed her friend, but having zero desire to push the sick woman. 

“Can I have some tea?” Maya asked, leaning against her pillows, “I think there’s some made in the kitchen.” 

“Of course,” Vic said, getting up, “Yeah. I’ll be right back.” 

She went into the kitchen, finding a pot of tea. She poured Maya a mugful before grabbing some crackers that she knew Maya liked out of the cabinet, going back into the bedroom. 

“Thanks,” Maya said, taking the mug, “Sorry I’m such a boring hang this afternoon.” 

“No,” Vic said, shaking her head, “It’s fine. Sleeping is how you are going to get better. Besides, you’ve got a pretty good book collection going here.” 

“Most of those are Carina’s,” Maya shrugged. 

“That explains why there are only a few in English,” Vic nodded, smiling at her friend. 

Seeing the way Maya was with Carina still made Vic so happy. She had been used to the tough, controlling, sometimes rude, but always fiercely loyal Maya that she had met on her first day at 19. 

Maya and Andy had both welcomed her to the station with open arms, showing her the ropes of being a female firefighters. Travis had been her mentor because he was technically the newest at the station, but both Maya and Andy were the most recent probies meaning they were also in charge of helping her. 

She genuinely thought Maya was going to kill her with all the drills she made her run, but once she realized Maya was doing it to help her, that in her weird way, the fact that the blonde was pushing her showed that she cared about her. 

One day, while Maya was having her run hose drills for the millionth time, Vic had yelled at her “Who made you like this?” Maya had gotten extremely self-conscious, mumbling “my dad” before leaving Vic alone. The younger woman had realized she hit some kind of raw nerve and was careful after that to not ask anything like that. 

As she got to really know her, Vic noticed how Maya was beyond self-critical and seemed to be terrified of getting into any kind of long term romantic relationship, watching Maya break up with a woman she had apparently been dating for about three months not long after she got to the station. 

In time, Vic grew to love Maya’s intensity, but as Maya and Carina got together, Vic couldn’t help but be relieved that some of Maya’s sharp edges wore off and the blonde started to open herself up to others and seemed to be truly happy for the first time ever. 

Vic was also happy Maya had someone to take care of her, especially now. She shuttered to think of what it would be like if Maya was this sick and on her own. Maya had always been one to come in to work when she was sick, often sharing her sicknesses around the station house, but since Carina, Maya had been taking better care of herself, or rather, Carina had been forcing her to take care of herself. 

Vic was pulled out of her thoughts about her friends by Maya’s coughing. 

“You sure there’s nothing else you need?” Vic asked. 

Maya nodded, “Yeah. Do you want to watch a movie or something?” 

“Sure,” Vic said, nodding, “In here or out on the couch?” 

“Couch,” Maya said, “You can go pick something. I’ll meet you out there.” 

“Let me help you,” Vic said as Maya struggled to get up. 

Vic grabbed the oxygen tank with one hand, supporting Maya with the other. They made it to the couch, Maya basically collapsing onto it as Vic grabbed the remote. They put on a musical, Vic’s choice, Maya too tired to complain. 

The blonde drifted in and out of sleep over the next hour and a half, Vic keeping a close eye on her. About five hours after Vic got there, the front door opened, Carina walking in. 

“You got her to the couch?” Carina said, surprised when she saw Vic sitting here, Maya sleeping.

“Hey Carina,” Vic said, pausing the movie, “Yeah. It was her idea. Why? Is that bad?” 

“No,” Carina said, setting down her bag, “No. She just hasn’t left the bed for anything except the bathroom since she got home from the ER.” 

“Is she going to be ok?” Vic asked as Carina went into the kitchen, washing her hands quickly before coming over to the couch. 

“Si,” Carina said, nodding, “Eventually. Her body is just struggling to fight this off. She’s getting better though. Her oxygen is holding better when she moves around and her cough is getting more productive which is moving the infection out. She will be fine.” 

Just then, Maya moved, coughing as her eyes opened. She smiled at Carina through the coughing fit, the brunette sitting down next to her, rubbing her back as she handed her some tissues. 

“You’re home,” Maya said once she could breathe again. 

“Si,” Carina said, smiling at her, “And you made it out of bed.” 

“Vic’s a pretty good nurse,” Maya said, looking over at her friend, “I am starting to feel a little better though.” 

“Good,” Carina said as Maya leaned on her, “Vic, do you want to stay for dinner?” 

“Sure,” the younger woman said, nodding. 

The rest of the evening was nice, Carina enjoying having someone to eat dinner with who didn’t fall asleep in the middle of it, although to her credit, Maya did manage to sit at the table and eat most of her dinner without crashing, still not having much of an appetite. 

Vic went home, and after an inhaler treatment and shower, Maya and Carina both crashed for the night, the blonde exhausted just from sitting at the table for dinner. 

The next two weeks were hard for both of them. Maya started feeling better, gaining back energy little by little, but that just meant she was bored and cranky because she still couldn’t do everything she was used to. 

When Carina refused to let her go for a run about a week and a half into the illness, Maya had screamed at her that she was not a baby and did not need to be taken care of, going into the guest room and slamming the door behind her. 

When she came out almost four hours later, Carina was pissed that she had taken so long to come apologize until Maya told her that she had fallen asleep and apologized for trying to push herself too hard. 

Finally, after three long weeks, Maya was allowed to go back to work. The cough was mostly gone, she had most of her normal energy back, and she was finally feeling like herself again. She still looked a little gaunt, having lost quite a bit of weight when she was sleeping all the time, and she had lost some of her typical strength during that time too, but she knew she would be fine. 

Carina walked her to work on her first day back, happy that her girlfriend was finally back to her old self. “You look so sexy in that uniform,” Carina said, biting her lip as Maya came out of her bunk dressed in her normal work attire. 

“My pants are literally about to fall down,” Maya said, tightening her belt, “Everything is too big.” 

“I wouldn’t mind if your pants fell down,” Carina said, raising an eyebrow as she walked over to Maya, kissing the side of her neck. 

“Stop,” Maya whined, “I have to be at work in 5 minutes. We don’t have time for that.” 

“We have a lot of making up to do,” Carina said, unbuttoning Maya’s shirt, “And now that your lungs are healthy again, I plan on doing just that.” 

“After work,” Maya said, her resolve slowly starting to crumble just as there was a knock on her door, Andy walking in without waiting. 

“Hey, Mai I was just wondering…,” the lieutenant said, stopping short when she looked up, “Oh… sorry… I’ll come back…”

“No,” Maya said, quickly rebuttoning her shirt, “No, what is it lieutenant?” 

“I was just coming to see how you were feeling your first day back,” Andy said, “Clearly, your lung function is back to normal.” 

Maya blushed a little as Carina laughed. 

“I’m fine,” Maya said, “I’ll be up in a minute.” 

“Alright,” Andy said, closing the door behind her. 

“I really do have to go,” Maya said, giving Carina one more kiss, “But you could come with me. I will make it worth your while after.” 

“Fine,” Carina agreed, taking Maya’s hand and following her upstairs, both of them happy that finally, things were going to get back to normal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally the last chapter. It took me forever to figure out how to wrap this up. What did you think? As always, if you have any prompts, I'm always looking for new material to write.

**Author's Note:**

> There was part one. Hopefully I'll have part 2 up tomorrow! Let me know what you think so far.


End file.
